Special Category Status & Special Packages for States

Knowledge Themes

Structural Subtopics

• Evolution and historical background of Special Category Status
• Role of the 5th Finance Commission and Gadgil formula
• National Development Council (NDC) and its decision-making power
• Criteria for according SCS including hilly terrain and strategic location
• Comparison between Special Category Status and Special Status under Article 371
• Financial benefits of SCS including 90:10 grant-to-loan ratio for Centrally Sponsored Schemes
• Impact of 14th and 15th Finance Commission recommendations on SCS
• Transition from Planning Commission to NITI Aayog and its impact on state funding
• Significance of Special Packages as an alternative to SCS
• Issues of fiscal federalism and horizontal equity among states
• Case study of demands for SCS by Andhra Pradesh and Bihar
• Rationalization of Centrally Sponsored Schemes in SCS versus non-SCS states
• Tax exemptions and industrial incentives for special category states
• Challenges in the classification of "backwardness" and socio-economic indicators